Network `Disconnect` option grayed out after using `sudo netplan apply` (Xubuntu 20.04)

Y. Yoshii

1/27/23, 11:13 AM

I was following this tutorial to setup static ip address on my xfce 20.04 laptop. Everything was fine until I executed sudo netplan apply, after which the disconnect button on the network config panel was grayed out and I was no longer able to disconnect from neither my wifi nor ethernet. I tried few things like sudo systemctl restart network-manager.service, sudo rfkill unblock wifi, and sudo ifconfig wlp2s0 up (yes I checked the interface name), but none worked.
After a reboot, the problem went away, but then it came back after I executed sudo netplan apply.
My /etc/netplan/01-network-manager-all.yml looks like this:

# Let NetworkManager manage all devices on this system
network:
  version: 2
  renderer: NetworkManager
  ethernets:
    enp3s0:
      dhcp4: no
      addresses:
        - 192.168.1.17/24
      gateway4: 192.168.1.1
      nameservers:
          addresses: [8.8.8.8, 1.1.1.1]

For those wondering what I'm doing, I am setting up my home network with openwrt routers and it requires me to set a static ip address to be able to access them in their fail-safe mode. For that reason I am going to be changing my computer's config many times, so re-booting every time I change anything is something that I want to avoid.

0 + 0

xubuntu

network-manager

20.04

ChanganAuto

1/27/23, 11:19 AM

You should've followed the "Configuring Static IP address on Ubuntu Desktop" instructions, not the ones for Ubuntu Server.

Y. Yoshii

1/27/23, 1:11 PM

What a bless! After I switched to the GUI as ChanganAuto suggested, It started working like a charm! I went to the `edit connections` menu and created two network connections, one is static and the other is DHCP assigned. Now I can select either of them, and it switches up instantly without issues. My issue is solved, but I think I'll keep this question up in case anyone finds why the network manager menu gets grayed out in the first place.

Elon Musk

I sit in a Tesla and translated this thread with Ai:

EN: Network `Disconnect` option grayed out after using `sudo netplan apply` (Xubuntu 20.04)

TH: ตัวเลือกเครือข่าย 'ตัดการเชื่อมต่อ' เป็นสีเทาหลังจากใช้ 'sudo netplan ใช้' (Xubuntu 20.04)

RO: Opțiunea „Deconectare” de rețea este dezactivată după utilizarea „sudo netplan apply” (Xubuntu 20.04)

RU: Параметр сети «Отключить» становится серым после использования «sudo netplan apply» (Xubuntu 20.04)

VI: Tùy chọn `Ngắt kết nối` của mạng chuyển sang màu xám sau khi sử dụng `Sudo netplan apply` (Xubuntu 20.04)

Post an answer

Most people don’t grasp that asking a lot of questions unlocks learning and improves interpersonal bonding. In Alison’s studies, for example, though people could accurately recall how many questions had been asked in their conversations, they didn’t intuit the link between questions and liking. Across four studies, in which participants were engaged in conversations themselves or read transcripts of others’ conversations, people tended not to realize that question asking would influence—or had influenced—the level of amity between the conversationalists.